Page 265 of Axis of Fire

“How the hell could they put that thing on you?”

He was furious.

And I was trying to silence every troubling thought in my head by admiring him instead.

Thank the gods Tarven never noticed things like that about me.

His anger consumed him completely, only intensifying his need to protect me.

He always did this.

Never realizing it only made me like him more.

“Why did you even provoke her?” he asked.

My brows shot up.

“What?” I pressed a hand dramatically to my chest, feigning offense.

“You think I started it?”

“Obviously.” He nodded without hesitation.

“I know you too well.

And I know you’d do anything to end up sharing a studio with Ria.”

Well.

He wasn’t wrong about that.

“I like her,” I said lightly.

“Besides, we get along pretty well.”

And we each carried secrets dangerous enough to destroy the other.

Whether trust existed between us yet or not—

It would have to, eventually.

I’d seen in one of my visions that Ria and I would become close.

Though I never fully knew whether those visions were truly glimpses of the future—

Or just games my own mind liked to play.

“You and Airis are both becoming ridiculous over her.”

I looked at him in confusion.

Okay...

I understood immediately where Airis was heading after I told him Ria had supposedly gone to sleep early tonight—

But obsessed?

“With what exactly?” I asked carefully.